Comparison

Notability vs Paper

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Notability

Capture, organize, and enhance your thoughts with a versatile digital notebook. Seamlessly blend handwriting, typing, and multimedia to annotate documents, record lectures, and generate summaries. Ideal for students and professionals seeking to boost productivity and learning.

Highlights
  • Handwritten and typed notes
  • PDF and document annotation
  • Audio recording and transcription
  • AI-powered summaries and quizzes
  • Customizable organization
  • Cross-device sync
Features
Read full description

From your first lecture to your next big meeting, Notability helps you think, learn, and work better. Take handwritten notes, annotate documents, record audio, and stay organized in one place so your ideas are always clear, searchable, and ready when you need them. NEW: NOTABILITY CLASSIC IS BACK Prefer to pay one time for Notability? Our Classic plan is a one-time purchase with no subscription required. FREE DIGITAL NOTES FOR WORK & SCHOOL • Write, type, or sketch with digital ink, highlighters, and text tools. • Mark up anything: PDFs, textbooks, lecture slides, images, and more. • Combine handwriting, typed text, images, diagrams, and sketches on the same page. • Stay organized with customizable folders and subjects that grow with you. FOR PROFESSIONALS: WORK SMARTER AND SAVE TIME • Mark up documents, capture meetings, organize ideas, and present with confidence. • Import and handwrite on any document: PDFs, DOCs, presentations, reports, and more. • Fill out forms in the office or on a job site. • Combine handwriting, text, photos and documents in one place. • Record calls and meetings to transcribe voice in real-time. Audio is synced to your notes so nothing is missed. • Receive automated meeting notes, takeaways, and summaries. • Search handwriting, transcripts, text, and PDFs to quickly revisit decisions and action items. • Present notes, documents, and ideas in full screen, with a laser pointer to guide attention. • View and edit two notes side-by-side to stay focused and productive. • Share a PDF of your note in one tap. FOR STUDENTS: STUDY SMARTER AND ACE EXAMS • Take handwritten notes digitally or annotate lecture slides or your textbooks. • Record lectures and get instant audio transcripts and real-time summaries in your notes. • Audio recordings are synced to the exact moment you write in a note — perfect for lectures. • Import lecture slides, textbook PDFs, and assignments into organized folders and subjects. • Search across handwriting, typed notes, and transcripts to instantly find content from classes. • Study content from your note with personalized quizzes and flashcards to practice with active recall. • Chat with your notes to review concepts, clarify ideas, and prepare for exams. WORK YOUR WAY • Seamlessly switch between handwriting and typing. • Import files instantly and keep everything connected. • Share notes easily to collaborate or get feedback when needed. • Access your notes across iPad, iPhone, Mac, and the web. • Create beautiful notes using templates from the Notability Gallery. UPGRADE TO A NOTABILITY SUBSCRIPTION Notability is free to use. With an upgraded subscription, you can receive: • Unlimited note-taking • AI-powered productivity and study tools • Handwriting recognition and math conversion • Live Audio transcripts • Auto-backup and iCloud sync Download for free on iPad, iPhone, Mac, and web. Privacy Policy: notability.com/privacy Terms of Service: notability.com/terms

About

Paper

This app offers a clean and configurable writing environment for various creative projects. It supports Markdown and plain text, syncs with iCloud, and integrates with other tools. Users can publish drafts to popular blogging platforms and export documents in multiple formats.

Highlights
  • Gorgeous writing space
  • Silky-smooth typing
  • Deep personalization (Pro)
  • Markdown or Plain Text support
  • iCloud sync
  • Publish to Medium, WordPress, Ghost
  • Export to PDF, HTML, DOCX, ePub
Features
Read full description

“This is a super-clean writing space with a lot of configurability that stays out of sight when you don’t need it.” App Store Review 2020 # STORY Read it here → paper.pro/story # HIGHLIGHTS · Gorgeous writing space · Silky-smooth typing · Deep personalization (Pro) · Markdown or Plain Text · Syncs with iCloud · Integrates with TextExpander · Publishes drafts to Medium, WordPress, Ghost, or Micro.blog · Exports to PDF, HTML, RTF, DOCX, ePub, image, or clipboard · Works seamlessly across your iPhone, iPad, and Mac # PRO FEATURES Basic adjustments like text size are free in Paper. More advanced personalization can be purchased with Pro Features. You will not be buying anything blindly, though. The trial period for Pro Features is untimed, so you can take your time to decide if they are a worthy investment. While trialing Pro Features, you might occasionally see a popup. Simply press Reset in the popup to get rid of it completely. Pro Features are either a subscription or a one-time purchase. Both the subscription and the one-time purchase unlock Pro Features on all your iPhones and iPads that share the same Apple ID. This subscription (or one-time purchase) applies only to iPhones and iPads. Macs require a separate subscription (or one-time purchase). The one-time purchase is hidden by default. To enable it, go to the Settings app → Apps → Paper → Purchases → toggle "Show Lifetime Option". If you want to upgrade from a Monthly subscription to a Yearly one (or to a Lifetime license), go to Paper’s page in the App Store and press the rounded button with the price next to the Yearly subscription option (or next to the Lifetime in-app purchase). # BUSINESSES, SCHOOLS & ORGANIZATIONS Businesses, schools, and organizations can use one of the following methods to purchase the Pro version of the app: · Apple Business Manager · Apple School Manager · Volume Purchasing The Pro version of the app can be accessed from this link → paper.pro/get # MARKDOWN FORMATTING SYNTAX # Heading 1 ## Heading 2 ### Heading 3 #### Heading 4 ##### Heading 5 ###### Heading 6 **Bold** __Bold__ *Italic* _Italic_ ~Underline~ ~~Strikethrough~~ ==Highlight== ::Highlight:: `Inline Code` ``` Code Block ``` [Link Text](http://paper.pro) ![Alt Text](http://image.jpeg) - Bulleted List - Bulleted List - Nested Bulleted List * Bulleted List * Bulleted List * Nested Bulleted List 1. Numbered List 2. Numbered List 3. Numbered List 1. Nested Numbered List - [ ] Task List - [x] Task List > Blockquote >> Nested Blockquote >>> 2x Nested Blockquote Text that needs a footnote[^Footnote description] ++ Inline comment ++ /* Inline comment */ %% Comment block | Col 1 | Col 2 | | ------ | ------ | | Cell 1 | Cell 2 | | Cell 3 | Cell 4 | --- ← Horizontal Rule \_ ← Markdown Escape ° ← HTML Escape # FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ## How do I share my document? · On the main screen with documents: Tap and hold the document. Select "Share" from the menu. · In the document editor: Tap the title of the document in the top bar, then tap the round "Share" button in the popup. ## How do I print my document? · On the main screen with documents: Tap and hold the document. Select "Print" from the menu. · In the document editor: Tap the title of the document in the top bar. Select "Print" from the menu. ## Can I draw in the app? No. Paper is purely a plain-text editor. ## Can I add pictures? You can only link to public images on the Web. ## Can I password-protect my notes? No. ## Paper changes the font when I switch between alphabetic and non-alphabetic keyboards. How do I prevent it? · Change the keyboard to a non-alphabetic one (Japanese, Chinese, Korean, etc.). · Tap the "Settings" button in the top right corner. · Under the "Font" submenu, toggle "Keep for ABC Keyboards". ## Need more help? You can reach me via the in-app chat → "Settings" button in the corner → "Chat with the Maker" # TERMS OF USE paper.pro/terms-of-use

Screenshots

Notability4 screens
Paper4 screens

Verdict

The call

Notability and Paper both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 72% of Paper's written reviews are positive against 36% of Notability's. Paper also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.5). Notability's advantage is ratings volume (457K vs 1.7K) and update cadence (weekly vs monthly). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Notability sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Paper sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Notability against 4.7 for Paper. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notability has 457K ratings behind it against 1.7K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 36% of Notability's written reviews are positive against 72% of Paper's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Notability ships an update weekly, Paper monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Notability versus Paper: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotabilityPaper
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (457K ratings) — better4.7 (1.7K ratings)
Positive reviews36.3% of reviews72.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings457K — better1.7K
Update frequencyWeekly — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#75 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS17.513.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size411 MB39 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGinger LabsMihhail Lapushkin

Customer experience

Notability

All ratings456,880 ratings
Positive94.8%
Neutral1.3%
Negative3.9%
Written reviews3,624 reviews
Positive36.3%
Neutral8.7%
Negative55.0%

Paper

All ratings1,703 ratings
Positive92.4%
Neutral3.3%
Negative4.3%
Written reviews229 reviews
Positive72.5%
Neutral8.7%
Negative18.8%

User reviews

Notability

From 457K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great app for note-taking
  • 👍 Smooth handwriting experience
  • 📝 Excellent organization and file management
  • 🎙️ Useful audio recording feature
  • 🔍 Handwriting recognition and search

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Sync issues with iCloud
  • 🔍 Limited search and organization options
  • 🖍️ Frustrating highlighter behavior
  • 🔒 Concerns about subscription model
  • 🔧 Buggy after recent updates

Paper

From 1.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💗 Fantastic app
  • 🎀 Great tool for writers
  • 👍 Clean writing app
  • 🤩 Awesome app
  • 👍 Cute animations

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Glitchy and unreliable
  • 💰 Paywalled features
  • 🐛 Lost files and documents
  • 🐛 Cursor issues
  • 🐛 Buggy and unstable

Bugs and requests

Notability

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Notes disappearing or getting corrupted
  • Frequent crashes and performance issues
  • Palm rejection problems after updates
  • Inconsistent behavior when importing files

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved folder/hierarchy organization
  • More shape recognition and drawing tools
  • Side-by-side viewing of multiple notes
  • Ability to edit/rename audio recordings
  • Better integration with other apps and services

Paper

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Files randomly disappearing
  • Cursor issues causing freezes
  • Syncing and iCloud integration problems

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add image support
  • Improve file management and recovery
  • Expand font and customization options
  • Implement team/collaborative writing features
  • Add text formatting options like italics and bold

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Notability

Subscriptions9
  • Notability Lite$5.991 Month
  • Notability Plus$7.991 Month
  • Notability Plus$12.993 Months
Show 6 more
  • Notability Lite$14.991 Year
  • Notability Plus1 Year trial2 variants$19.991 Year
  • Notability Plus$19.991 Year
  • Notability Pro$19.991 Month
  • Notability Plus$29.991 Year
  • Notability Pro3 Days trial$99.991 Year
One-time1
  • Notability Classic$49.99
6 purchases

Paper

Subscriptions4
  • Pro Features — Discounted$14.991 Month
  • Pro Features$29.991 Month
  • Pro Features — Discounted$49.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Pro Features$99.991 Year
One-time2
  • Pro Features — Discounted$99.99
  • Pro Features$199.99

Questions

Is Notability free?
Notability is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Paper free?
Paper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Notability or Paper?
Notability is rated higher. Notability averages 4.8 out of 5 from 457K ratings, while Paper averages 4.7 from 1.7K ratings.
Do Notability or Paper have ads?
Neither Notability nor Paper shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Notability or Paper?
Notability ships an update weekly, and Paper monthly. Most recently, Notability was updated on September 25, 2026 and Paper on September 23, 2026.

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